Chelsea are in “advanced talks” with Monaco over the loan signing of Radamel Falcao, a striker who could fill the void left by Didier Drogba‘s retirement now that Mauro Icardi has committed his future to Inter Milan.

David Woods of the Daily Star quotes a club source when providing information on Falcao‘s potential switch to Stamford Bridge: “Talks have been going well and Jose is still a big fan of Falcao, despite the difficult time he had at (Manchester) United,” said the source. “It looks like the deal is going to happen.”

“Mourinho shares the same agent as Falcao in Jorge Mendes and is said to be confident a deal can be sealed within the next few days,” writes Woods.

Falcao managed just four Premier League goals during his 2014-15 loan spell with Manchester United. He worked hard to regain his fitness after suffering a serious knee injury prior to last year’s World Cup, but he wasn’t rewarded with prolific goalscoring form. The Colombian still has plenty to offer and needs to rediscover his clinical nature in a pressure-free environment.

Mourinho is unlikely to deploy Falcao over Diego Costa or Loic Remy, but like Drogba last year, he could still receive ample playing time. The Ivorian scored six goals in 10 starts and 23 substitute appearances across the Premier League and Europe, per WhoScored.com. He became pivotal when Costa and Remy struggled with injury problems toward the season’s end.

Chelsea were linked with a move for Icardi, reported by Simon Johnson of the London Evening Standard. However, the Argentine has now signed a new contract with Inter, keeping him at the San Siro until 2019, reported by ESPN FC.

Serie A specialist David Amoyal thinks Icardi‘s deal is excellent for the Italian league:

Although Mourinho‘s side could offer Icardi greater opportunities to play at a higher level, the 22-year-old is intent on helping Inter back to the big time. “All players want to be in the Champions League, but I’m happy here at Inter,” Icardi revealed to the club’s official website (h/t ESPN FC). “I hope I can qualify for that competition next year with a great Nerazzurri side.”

Goals were hardly a problem for Mourinho‘s men during the title-winning Premier League campaign, in which they finished second-highest top scorers with 73, behind Manchester City on 83. However, both Costa and Remy consistently struggled with injury problems, so a quality third-choice striker is needed to maintain Chelsea’s presence across all fronts.

Falcao‘s ability can’t be scoffed at, even after his wretched campaign with United. He could turn out to be a masterstroke or risk who wasn’t worth taking for Mourinho.

Either way, Louis van Gaal and Red Devils supporters will watch on nervously if he heads to west London and begins to perform well. United had first refusal on the player, but are likely lining up alternative options to compete with Wayne Rooney and Robin van Persie.

B/R UK’s Andy Brassell recently looked at under-the-radar players Chelsea could take an interest in:

Mourinho won’t be looking to change his squad too much, but a subtle refreshing could further the side’s credentials in Europe and the Champions League may spark Falcao into life.

He’d no doubt need to take his chances at Chelsea, something he wasn’t able to do last season with United. Even so, the player showed enough commitment to suggest he could develop into a top Premier League star within the right setting.

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